Policies
Policies & Terms
Policies and terms governing studio use, data handling, and SLS printing services.
These are readable highlights of our common policies. The Washington University Terms and Conditions are linked at the bottom.
Use & eligibility
WashU members sign in with WashU Key and order at cost, billed to a WashU funding number (a cost center or grant); anyone in the United States can order and pay by card.
No training is required or offered: we run the machines.
Data & uploaded files
Your designs stay yours. Uploading a file to us does not change that.
We use the files you upload only to produce your order. To print reliably, our staff may open your models and make small repairs to the mesh. We may also analyze uploaded files internally to improve our printing.
We do not sell, publish, or share your files outside the studio, except where university policy or the law requires it.
We do not guarantee how long we keep your files. We may delete them once your order is complete, so please keep your own copy of anything you want to save.
Print service policies
How the SLS print service operates, plainly stated.
| Topic | Policy |
|---|---|
| Scope | The print-service policies form part of every quote you accept; for external orders, together with the Washington University Terms and Conditions. |
| Reprints | Free for machine or process faults. Design-related failures, and reprints because you don't like the finish, are billable. |
| Cancellation | You can cancel any time before we start printing your order. For card orders a non-refundable $25 cancellation fee is withheld and the rest is refunded; WashU recharge orders cancel at no charge. Once printing starts, the order is billable in full and can no longer be cancelled. |
| Declined orders | We may decline or cancel an order at our discretion at any time before printing starts, for example when a part is unlikely to print well or is not something we can make. A declined card order is refunded in full, with no cancellation fee; a declined WashU order is never charged. |
| Storage | Undeliverable or returned orders are held seven business days while redelivery is arranged, then may be discarded. Any additional delivery cost is the customer's. The job remains billable. |
| Quotes | A quote is valid for 30 days. |
| Materials | We print in Nylon 12 sourced directly from Formlabs; customer-supplied materials are not accepted. |
| Training | None required. We run the machines; training is not offered for the print service. |
Terms and Conditions
External (card-paid) orders are governed by the Washington University Terms and Conditions, version 2026-09-16, which you accept at checkout together with the print-service policies above. WashU recharge orders are outside the terms and accept the print-service policies only.